International business leader and CEO of Airtel Ghana, Lucy Quist has encouraged young people to redefine and position themselves to drive growth and innovation in the various industries they find themselves.

She spoke at the African Internship Academy as part of her Bold New Normal Tour; an initiative to engage and empower young people to challenge the status quo and take bold steps to create a prosperous future for themselves and for the rest of Africa.

Her talk focused on how African Millennials can thrive in an ever changing global landscape – whether they choose to pursue a career or venture into entrepreneurship. Lucy Quist touched on the areas of technology, globalization and consistent self-improvement as crucial elements that will enable young Africans to make a positive impact at all levels.

She highlighted the trends in global and local employment and encouraged young people to appreciate the changes taking place as they plan their careers.

She said “You live in a connected world where your competition is not the guy sitting next to you, for you the human factor or your competition could be someone sitting in Canada, the UK or Australia.

The human factor is bridged and access to a job is no longer dependent on location. Increasingly you will find people who are able to do your job remotely. That is a real fact and challenge which means over time your career will face competitive pressure that is not local”.

“Some of the jobs we have today will be eroded, sometimes by technology but mostly by someone else who has found a more efficient way of doing and delivering it over the internet. Globally, people are paying attention to trends including skill sets required for jobs in Africa in the next decade. You cannot afford to be left out of this conversation. As young people, you need to position yourselves to take advantage of the current and future opportunities by staying relevant and informed.” She concluded.

Leslie Addae, co-founder of the Africa Internship Academy - the hosting organisation for this event- commented on the talk saying, “Having Lucy at the Internship House to speak on Careers with our fellows was a good opportunity for our fellows to have a better appreciation of the skill set they need to succeed in the work place.”

“At Africa Internship Academy, we provide work-readiness training for the students and graduates. The training covers the basics of work life, time management, communications and language skills, computer skills, budgeting and many other skills needed to be successful in your job”, he concluded.

The Bold New Normal is a new way of thinking that Lucy Quist advocates for. The Bold New Normal Tour is a series of interactive sessions focusing on empowering young entrepreneurial minds to take bold steps away from the norm and to create prosperity for themselves, their country and for Africa.

The third event under this tour was held at the Africa Internship Academy, a self-sustaining social enterprise that prepares students and connects leading African employers with diverse qualified talents.

The events under this tour will be held at key locations where Lucy Quist can meet and interact with young entrepreneurial minds.